I am an example of resistance
I hang from manufactured rope On the Tree of Life I didn't live a Brothers Grimm fairy tale Conceived into oppression I was wise beyond my years But I've never received a White man's education Only domination I was bought and sold like sheet metal I've been called boy Inferior to my Superior I've been violated and raped No one heard my screams I was tamed like an animal I was a field hand and a house nigger I've picked the fabric that creates My Master's shirt I've wiped his children's noses And prepared his daily meals I've tried to escape to new freedoms Only to be brought back to plantation land My footprints were imprinted in Southern soil I've been beaten without reason My whips never healed I was fed up with His rules I rebelled Now my lifeless body dangles Helplessly Before you from a noose My legs sway to and fro My eyes are blood-shot red I am an example of resistance This is dedicated to my ancestor's who paved the way so that I may live freely today. I was listening to Billie Holiday's "Strange Fruit" and my mind wandered. I imagined the "strange fruit" telling his life story to the people who watched him die. *A poem from "Just My Thoughts: Mind, Body & Soul", published July 18, 2006.
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to be wise is to rise like heat
it may get too hot for some in the kitchen top cheffin’ daily feats where the cookers compete but for those who can’t handle the swelter from the melting pot of life’s culinary delight i’ll feed you food for thought bring a big appetite life is but a board with options and decisions Reflect. the game is but a path to follow your life’s mission Improve. carpe diem will drive your hopes and ambition Seize. take the road less travelled by and avoid repetition Emerge. it is my purpose work for this creative composition to share my story Reflect. set some goals Improve. play my position Seize. and live God’s vision Emerge. listen, we treat life as one big audition but you're the only one competing in your journey's expedition don’t be a victim of fame or material thangs it’s a shame to see people make money then let money make them bank rolls and a royce don’t make the person beauty is skin deep what’s inside really counts gold in abundance holds nothing to what lips of character amounts can’t follow the crowd better to find your way through trust your own instincts you know what’s good for you family is always family can’t pick and choose them it’s best to take them as they are flower, roots, and stem some friends are not friends a few will “fri” you in the “end” watch the company you keep the real and the pretend love doesn’t hurt it protects, trusts, hopes, perseveres anything of the opposite delights in what hate bears realize your own presence embrace your unique purpose in work, be at joy to humanity, be of service time is of the essence the present is a gift relish in the now in every circumstance, be content what is seen, temporary what is not, eternity be thankful for what you have possessions are fleeting and please remember... always put God first! live everyday to the fullest your days are numbered on earth don't let your dreams die you can’t lose if you try Reflect | Improve | Seize | Emerge And like the sun does every day... just rise super blue blood moon
lunar eclipse in leo bathe me in your hue await the plot twist the culmination of dreams life’s about to change hundred fifty two years of built up energy divine trifecta rare phenomenon bring me out of the shadow ultimate release unchain from it all
go wherever life takes you let your heart be free welcome to the forgotten poor
underfunded schools, a Chinese spot, the projects, and a busy liquor store this is all she sees when she walks out the door her momma tells her to study hard so she can have more every day the little girl writes in her composition notebook one story is about this five course meal and the lives that it took short story with a moral, teach a lesson like fables a little food for thought to feed the mass behind your navel first course (soup) first to the block where the corners stay open cause the dealers don’t stop and the pigs stay looking for their next quota and everyone thinks they’re Ray Liotta destined to be “a made man”, but they don’t understand they’re the reason why there are fiends coming back like loyal fans for assorted brands transacting into non-melanated hands if politicians were only this sympathetic when the crack epidemic began second course (salad) here come the dirty boys in blue with nothing better to do profiling innocent people of a different skin hue thinking they’re above the law, beatings and shootings ensue they claimed they feared for their lives, camera footage purview getting slaps on their wrist for brutality they do then it’s back to the streets to target another like you third course (appetizer) now peep these two men arguing it’s hood beef their harboring one stole a chain and the block that he claims so he steps to the dude, figures gun fire will heal his pain one stray in the park and my best friend’s slain her momma screaming and crying hide her tears when it starts to rain but the memory of that day will remain fourth course (main dinner) next to the project bench where a little kid sits trying to make a dollar out of 15 cents and he feels it’s only common sense to give to the poor and take from the rich so he and his friends plan to hit a lick steal a man’s wallet and carjack his whip plan goes wrong, strapped man strikes back local news reports kid and friends got capped fifth course (dessert) you see the street prostitutes dressed like vixens in video shoots they hoe-ing the cooch just to get the hooker loot when they finish what they started give a customer the boot back to where they departed waiting for a horn toot hitting more balls out the park than legend Babe Ruth and the pimps in the cut stacking profits in zoot suits if you eat what you’re fed and that’s all that you know then you’re conditioned on familiar and that’s probably how you’ll grow unless you beat the status quo |
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Handwritten short review by legendary poet, writer, commentator, activist, and educator Nikki Giovanni for "Just My Thoughts: Mind, Body & Soul"
"It's not a #1 record but Just My Thoughts: Mind, Body & Soul catches the times of the heart and minds. Thank you so very much for sharing with me."
Poetically, Nikki Giovanni (excerpt) (side note: It's dated one day after my 22nd birthday! I cried and died when I saw that part!!) #Won'tHeDoIt! Yasss!!! Dear J.D. -
I'm delighted to grant permission. Good luck! Keep on keeping on. Poetically, Nikki Giovanni (her response to allow me to use her review for promotion) (side note: This is dated two days after her 67th birthday!) This is Nikki Giovanni's review for my still unreleased book of poetry, "R.I.S.E."
THIS is why I'm NOT stopping! Celebrated ICON, poet, memoirist, educator, dramatist, producer, actress, historian, filmmaker, and civil rights activist Dr. Maya Angelou acknowledged receiving my book with this kind card!
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